Challenging the U.S. Department of Labor’s New Overtime Rule

Kentucky has joined a coalition of 21 states that are challenging the new overtime rule.

The rule, issued in May, doubles the salary-level threshold for employees to be exempt from overtime, regardless of whether if they perform executive, administrative or professional duties. After Dec. 1, all employees are entitled to overtime if they earn less than $913 a week — including state and local government employees. The rule would increase the salary level automatically every three years.

The coalition has filed a complaint about the rule in federal court. Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin said in a news release that the rule “is another example of the federal government’s never-ending attempt to encroach upon the rights of individual states. This is a direct violation the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

“The result of this unfunded mandate by the federal government would be to force many private-sector employers to lay off workers,” Bevin continued. “This is not acceptable. Once again, the Obama administration is attempting to require compliance with non-legally binding edicts that should instead be decided at the state and local level.”

The other states in the coalition are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.